Texas is BIG

Hey everybody!  Yet again, the Happy Campers have fallen a bit behind on their blogging.  But, we have a really good reason - we made a SURPRISE visit to Maine and have been so busy cramming friend and family visits in that blogging took a back seat.  That's probably not a very good excuse, but we're going with it anyway.  So here's what we did after we left amazing New Mexico.

Austin, TX
We drove, and drove, and drove, and drove (you get the picture!) to Austin where we were super excited to check out 6th street and lots of live music.  Well, hate to disappoint, but we were disappointed!  Maybe it's because we aren't 20 anymore, but it just didn't meet our expectations.  Here are our highlights:

Hangar Lounge in the Warehouse District - OMG, the BEST salsa ever with nicely poured cocktails!  Very cool multi-level club with an outdoor bar on the roof which provided excellent views of downtown Austin.  Apparently we were all too excited about the salsa because we failed to take any pictures here....but we've borrowed one from their website to show you this uber chic hangout!

Fado Irish Pub - Sometimes when traveling, you happen upon unexpected little gems.  This was the case with Fado's.  We were walking up and down the streets of Austin checking out various restaurants and clubs that had been recommended to us when a little outdoor irish pub caught our eye.  Per Tracy's vote - they had the BEST Fish Tacos ever!  Fado's earned two thumbs up on food, atmosphere & live music!!  Looks like the photographer was once again sleeping on the job though.....because somehow we don't have any pics of this stop either!!

Congress Street Bridge - Bats - Bats - Bats....it was one of the craziest things we've ever seen.  These bats sleep under the bridge all day and then fly off into the night at dusk as a crowd stands by to witness the eerie sight.  Please, do yourself a favor and watch the video.  You will not be disappointed.

Watch the Bats take flight

Hard to capture in a photo - but there was an endless
stream that came out from beneath us on the bridge!

Amy watches th bats from
the bridge

The Salt Lick - Voted best restaurant in the Austin area, we drove to what seemed like the middle of nowhere to find this massive winery/bar/BBQ place.  Our mouths watered as we walked in and ordered 2 giant plates of meat - ribs, brisket, turkey, sausage.....I think the waiter was a bit shocked at how much food 2 chicks could put away!  T ended up loving it - the sauce was amazing.  Amy was a bit disappointed since it wasn't smothered in Smoky BBQ sauce.  But definitely worth the drive if you're in the Austin area!






The Meat!!



Walked in and saw these guys - T thought it was so funny
they had their bucket of PBR.  Turns out - they're from
Boston and came into town for the Texas/Oklahoma game

Barton Springs - Ok, this was pretty cool, although not exactly what we expected.  The spring is a constant 70 degrees and changes itself out daily with 32 million gallons of fresh spring water.  People have been enjoying the abundant waters of Barton Springs for over 10,000 years.

It was like a giant swimming pool only it had moss in it
We weren't sure what to make of it

We wish we had more to report on Austin, but honestly, it appears we mostly just ate!  Big surprise there!


Port Aransas, TX (aka Port A)
After Austin, we decided we needed a "vacation" from our daily sight-seeing so we headed to the gulf coast of Texas and managed to find a nice gem in On The Beach RV Park in Port A, just north of Corpus Christie.  We took a free ferry with 98 square feet in tow and spent 3 beautiful days and nights parked almost right on the beach.  The water was warm, the sun was hot, the cocktails were cold, and relaxation was found very quickly!

I (Tracy) also had one of my favorite laughing moments here...the water was shallow and warm, so we could go pretty far out.  I turned around at one point to see Amy blazing a trail towards shore, her flip flops flew off, her arms were swinging all over, I swear she was actually running ON the water.  Come to find out, she saw a little sting ray....I laughed so hard....only to have the act repeated the next day when a jelly fish swam by me.  FYI - I didn't move, but when I told Amy I just saw a jelly fish, she beelined to shore with limbs a flying!  Wish I had a video to share - it was funny....TWICE!!!

Sunrise in Port A

The view - can't beat it!

Come aboard, matey!

This bird squawks too much!



Cute Sandpipers
Their little legs move so fast!




Our first ferry ride with 98 square feet!

Probably the same jelly fish I saw in the water
washed ashore - Amy decided to save it by rolling
it back into the water using 2 water bottles!

All in all, Texas was BIG....but SMALL on overall enjoyment!  From Port A, we drove, and drove, and drove some more until we hit Nashville, TN....which we'll cover in our next blog.....coming very soon!!

On a sad note, while in Port A, we lost our little Sunny Boy.  Such an amazing kitty who we'll miss very much.  Many thanks to Aunt Cindy for taking such great care of Sunny while we were away. 




R.I.P Sunny Boy
1996 - 2011


Until the next exit...

Amy & Tracy